Arizona Estate Planning Laws

Adult Conservatorships

I want to speak to you today regarding adult conservatorships in the state of Arizona. An adult conservatorship occurs when a person is no longer able to provide for their own care or who is unable to take care of their own finances.

A conservator may have the authority to determine where that person will live and will make arrangements for the person’s daily life, including the food they eat, the clothes they wear, the transportation to medical and other appointments and the social and recreational activities the person will enjoy. The conservator however, must obtain the court’s approval for certain decisions, such as decisions regarding medical care and living arrangements.

Please feel free to contact the attorneys at Hildebrand Law if you have any other questions regarding an adult conservatorship in Arizona.

By: Chris Hildebrand

Typical estate planning documents include a living trust, a pour-over will, a living will, and powers of attorney for financial, health care, and mental health care decision-making. Tax planning, if needed, may include irrevocable trusts and asset protection may include LLCs, trusts, and careful planning. I’m Mark Bregman. Contact me at (480) 945-9131 to find out more about creating your own effective and affordable estate plan.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman

If you are interested in avoiding probate and having your estate administered privately, meeting not in the public record, there are several ways to accomplish that. First, we can setup a trust. A trust will hold your assets during your lifetime, you will manage everything virtually the same way you did before, and upon your disability or death, the trust spells out who is going to take over and who gets what and when. A trust is a great instrument for payment of money over time. So, if you have minor children, a trust could be the solution for you. Another way to avoid probate is to make sure you have beneficiary designations on all of your assets. For example, on your house or real estate, you can sign a beneficiary deed that states who gets your house or real property upon your passing, and all the person has to do to receive that property is to record a death certificate with the Maricopa County recorder’s office. With your vehicles, the Motor Vehicle Department now allows you to sign a beneficiary designation form that will allow for easy transfer of title upon your death. And, with financial accounts and life insurance, you can nominate the person or persons who will receive those assets all without ever having to go through probate. If you would like to setup an estate plan to avoid the probate process, please give us a call at Owens & Perkins at (480) 994-8824.

By: Attorney Michelle Perkins

Living Wills in Scottsdale, Arizona

I want to speak to you today regarding what a living will is in the state of Arizona. A living will is a written statement containing a person’s directives as to the medical care they authorize, as well as the medical care they may refuse in the event they are ever incapacitated and unable to express their desires regarding that medical care.

Health Care Power of Attorney

People usually also create a health care power of attorney, designating a person authorized to make medical decisions for that person if he or she is incapacitated. It’s a good idea to execute a health care power of attorney in the event you’re living will fails to include an unexpected health care situation that simply was not covered in your living will. Please feel free to contact the attorneys at Hildebrand Law if you have any other questions regarding living wills in Arizona.

By: Chris Hildebrand

Estate planning is when a client comes in to work with a lawyer to create and develop a plan for the distribution of their assets upon their passing. It also includes planning for assistance from others during the persons’ lifetime as they get older. If you don’t create your own estate plan, the state of Arizona has already decided who will get your assets. At Owens & Perkins, we understand that creating an estate plan can sometimes be daunting or uncomfortable. That’s why we’ve created a system to make it as easy as 1-2-3. First, contact our office and we will send you an estate-planning questionnaire that will walk you through each decision you have to make. Second, bring your completed estate-planning questionnaire in for a consultation with one of our highly trained lawyers. We handle all of the drafting, send the documents to you for review, and all you have to do is come in to sign. It’s that easy. And, when it’s done, people say they feel so much better knowing that they have a plan in place. It brings them comfort and peace of mind. If you would like to create, revise, or update your estate plan, please call us at Owens & Perkins at (480) 994-8824.

By: Attorney Michelle Perkins

Hello, I’m Mark Bregman, an Arizona estate planning and probate attorney since 1979. Clients hire me because I provide them with a high degree of comfort by explaining the different ways they can plan an estate, and then following through by creating a comprehensive plan using documents that help them avoid a guardianship, conservatorship, and probate, and the advice appropriate to help them and their loved ones achieve their expectations. I stay in contact with my clients and make sure their plans will be effective when most needed. This is the most popular reason clients hire me. What differentiates me from other attorneys is that I have spent many years developing and updating the provisions I use in creating trusts, wills, powers of attorney, and living wills designed to provide maximum protection for my clients, their families, and their hard earned wealth. I listen to my clients and convey difficult, non-intuitive concepts in a way that is easily understood. I begin by collecting information that induces prospective clients to think about what is important to them so that when we meet, I can listen to them tell me about themselves, their values, their families, and their intentions. I recognize that their wealth is also important to clients with little money. Every family has issues that should be discussed so that the client can choose his or her own way of dealing with their own family dynamics I can provide inexpensive and easy solutions using beneficiary deeds, POD accounts, and beneficiary designations to pass assets without using a trust or a probate, if it’s not necessary. Most of my clients are referred by financial advisors and satisfied clients who already trust me. I asked my clients to put aside their pre-conceived ideas of what they want and instead, focus on whether they like me. Not all lawyers are for all clients. I can’t write poetry or solve quadratic equations and I certainly can’t do the work most of my clients do, but I can create great estate plans. If you would like to work with me and my team, please give me a call at (480) 945-9131.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman

Probate is the legal process that confirms who is entitled to your property when you die and provides someone with the authority to transfer real estate, bank accounts, investments, and any other property you own that requires proof of ownership before it can be transferred. You can avoid probate if all of your important assets pass by operation of law. Property can pass by operation of law in one of the following six ways: beneficiary designations for retirement accounts, life insurance, and annuities, two, joint bank accounts, three, rights of survivorship and real property, four, other contractual rights, five, POD or TOD designations on bank or investment accounts, and six, beneficiary deeds for real property. You can also avoid probate, but not administration of your assets if you have a living trust. Whether avoiding probate or administration is a good idea depends on your particular circumstances. I’m Mark Bregman. Contact me at (480) 945-9131 to find out how I can use my knowledge and experience to help you choose the best estate plan.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman

About Chris Hildebrand

I’m Chris Hildebrand. I’m an attorney and the founder of Hildebrand Law. I’ve been practicing for almost twenty years. I enjoy estate planning because it gives me the ability to work closely with my clients, come up with solutions, not only solutions in terms of protecting their assets and the debts while they’re alive, but also to provide for their heirs and make sure that they are comfortable knowing that the people they care most about are protected. It also gives me the opportunity to create real relationships with people, real friendships and I find that really fascinating and interesting.

Scottsdale Estate Planning

I really enjoy that part of the practice. I think a lot of people’s fear with regards to addressing estate planning issues or meeting with an estate planning attorney is you’re inherently talking about a subject that people are uncomfortable with, which is their potential death and their assets and how much they have and how many debts they have. Clients invariably leave after the estate planning process is complete and they’re very relieved because they now know that what is important to them is protected. I think they really leave feeling empowered because of the decisions they’ve made going forward. It really forces us to look at their family as a whole and come up with a life plan for them so that they can achieve the desires or the wants or the things that they want to do both short term, now, as well as long term when they retire.

If you have any questions about estate planning or want to know more about the estate planning process, feel free to email me and I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have.

By: Chris Hildebrand

Estate planning is all about controlling your property while you are alive and well. Naming who takes care of you and your finances when you are unable to do so yourself, and providing for your loved ones after your gone the way you want, when you want, and how you want all at the lowest possible cost taking into consideration expenses, taxes, and fees. I’m Mark Bregman. Contact me at (480) 945-9131 to find out how I can use my experience to design a comfortable and affordable plan for you and your loved ones.

By: Attorney Mark Bregman